Google Maps 5.2 Adds Latitude Pinging, Twitter Integration to Hotpot

The latest version of Google Maps (v5.2) is out and it adds a couple of clever new features to an already robust offering. Those of you who have been using Places and Hotpot will notice that you now have the ability to share your ratings over twitter, letting your followers know what you think of the establishment. Once you connect your Twitter account, you’ll be able to share your reviews through the handy desktop widget.

The previous update of Google Maps for Android added the ability to check-in using Latitude. Today sees further enhancement of that feature, adding the option to ping your friends. Should you see one of your Latitude friends nearby, you can ping them and have them check in somewhere. Once they do, you get a notification of where they are located and can immediately meet up with them!

And finally, Google has improved the search functionality of Maps so that you can better locate exactly what you are looking for. Head to the Android Market to download the latest release of Google Maps or simply update your existing app from the handset!